1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a seal or weather strip for a door and more particularly to a door bottom seal which is automatically actuated to seal the gap between a door bottom and its sill as the door is closed and which is automatically retracted when the door is opened.
2. Background Art
Among seals and weather strips which are already known in the art, U.S. Pat. No. 3,703,788 discloses an automatic door bottom for sealing the gap between the bottom of a door and its adjacent sill when the door is closed. The door bottom comprises an inverted U-shaped channel for mounting along the bottom of a door. A flexible sealing element is carried within the channel. Means are provided for reciprocating the sealing element partially out of and back into the channel upon closing and opening the door respectively. The means for reciprocating the sealing element includes a pushrod actuated by bearing against the jamb of the door as the door is closed and spring means for retracting the sealing element when the door is opened.
While the automatic door bottom disclosed in that patent is quite useful and works well to create an effective seal, it may create a certain resistance to closing of the door as it reaches its fully closed position. The flexible sealing element is moved downwardly in a manner such that the end of the element opposite the door hinge may contact the sill before the hinge end. This occurs because the element moves downwardly about an axis of a single pivot pin. Since this contact at the end opposite the hinge end must occur at least slightly before the door reaches its completely closed position, the result will be that the contact between the sealing element and the door sill just before completion of the closing movement will generate the increased resistance to closing. This is an undesirable operating feature and is a source of wear that reduces its useful life.